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style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediShares2013AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediShares2013AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>Other2012-03-31iSHARES TRUST00011006632013-07-01false2013-07-01<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediShares2014AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> 2013 AMT-FREE MUNI TERM ETF<br/>Ticker: MUAB&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective</b>The iShares 2013 AMT-Free Muni Term ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P AMT-Free Municipal Series 2013 Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;). The Fund does not seek to return any predetermined amount at maturity.iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> 2014 AMT-FREE MUNI TERM ETF <br/>Ticker: MUAC&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective</b><b>Fees and Expenses</b>The iShares 2014 AMT-Free Muni Term ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P AMT-Free Municipal Series 2014 Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;). The Fund does not seek to return any predetermined amount at maturity.<b>Fees and Expenses</b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example.</b><b>Example.</b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. Fund expenses are calculated only through August 31, 2013 because the Fund is scheduled to cease operations and liquidate by that date. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. Fund expenses are calculated only through August 31, 2014 because the Fund is scheduled to cease operations and liquidate by that date. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:31<b>Portfolio Turnover.</b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 1% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Portfolio Turnover.</b><b>Principal Investment Strategies</b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 1% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies</b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of investment-grade, noncallable U.S. municipal bonds maturing in 2014. As of March 31, 2012, there were 2,934 issues in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Underlying Index includes municipal bonds primarily from issuers that are state or local governments or agencies (including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and U.S. territories such as the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam) such that the interest on the bonds is exempt from U.S. federal income taxes and the federal alternative minimum tax (&#8220;AMT&#8221;). Each bond must have a rating of at least BBB- by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Ratings Services, Baa3 by Moody&#8217;s Investors Service, Inc. (&#8220;Moody&#8217;s&#8221;), or BBB- by Fitch, Inc. and must have a minimum maturity par amount of $2 million to be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index. To remain in the Underlying Index, bonds must maintain a minimum par amount greater than or equal to $2 million as of each rebalancing date. All bonds in the Underlying Index will mature between June 1 and August 31 of the year referenced in the name of the Underlying Index. When a bond matures in the Underlying Index, an amount representing its value at maturity will be included in the Underlying Index throughout the remaining life of the Underlying Index, and any such amount will be assumed to earn a rate equal to the performance of the Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC&#8217;s, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), Weekly High Grade Index, which consists of Moody&#8217;s Investment Grade-1 municipal tax-exempt notes that are not subject to federal AMT. The Underlying Index is a market value weighted index and is rebalanced after the close on the last business day of each month.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability, duration, maturity or credit ratings and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its assets in the securities of its Underlying Index, except during the last months of the Fund&#8217;s operations, as described below. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in cash and cash equivalents (including money market funds affiliated with BFA), as well as in municipal bonds not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track its Underlying Index. The Fund will generally hold municipal bond securities issued by state and local municipalities whose interest payments are exempt from U.S. federal income tax, the federal AMT and, effective beginning in 2013, a federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income,&#8221; including dividends, interest and capital gains. In addition, the Fund may invest any cash assets in one or more affiliated municipal money market funds. In the last months of operation, as the bonds held by the Fund mature, the proceeds will not be reinvested in bonds but instead will be held in cash and cash equivalents, including, without limitation, AMT-free tax-exempt municipal notes, variable rate demand notes and obligations, tender option bonds and municipal commercial paper. These cash equivalents may not be included in the Underlying Index. By August 31, 2014, the Underlying Index is expected to consist entirely of cashed earned in this manner. Around the same time, the Fund will wind up and terminate, and its net assets will be distributed to then-current shareholders.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks</b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of investment-grade, noncallable U.S. municipal bonds maturing in 2013. As of March 31, 2012 there were 3,462 issues in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Underlying Index includes municipal bonds primarily from issuers that are state or local governments or agencies (including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and U.S. territories such as the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam) such that the interest on the bonds is exempt from U.S. federal income taxes and the federal alternative minimum tax (&#8220;AMT&#8221;). Each bond must have a rating of at least BBB- by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Ratings Services, Baa3 by Moody&#8217;s Investors Service, Inc. (&#8220;Moody&#8217;s&#8221;), or BBB- by Fitch, Inc. and must have a minimum maturity par amount of $2 million to be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index. To remain in the Underlying Index, bonds must maintain a minimum par amount greater than or equal to $2 million as of each rebalancing date. All bonds in the Underlying Index will mature between June 1 and August 31 of the year referenced in the name of the Underlying Index. When a bond matures in the Underlying Index, an amount representing its value at maturity will be included in the Underlying Index throughout the remaining life of the Underlying Index, and any such amount will be assumed to earn a rate equal to the performance of the Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC&#8217;s, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), Weekly High Grade Index, which consists of Moody&#8217;s Investment Grade-1 municipal tax-exempt notes that are not subject to federal AMT. The Underlying Index is a market value weighted index and is rebalanced after the close on the last business day of each month.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability, duration, maturity or credit ratings and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its assets in the securities of its Underlying Index, except during the last months of the Fund&#8217;s operations, as described below. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in cash and cash equivalents (including money market funds affiliated with BFA), as well as in municipal bonds not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track its Underlying Index. The Fund will generally hold municipal bond securities issued by state and local municipalities whose interest payments are exempt from U.S. federal income tax, the federal AMT and, effective beginning in 2013, a federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income,&#8221; including dividends, interest and capital gains. In addition, the Fund may invest any cash assets in one or more affiliated municipal money market funds. In the last months of operation, as the bonds held by the Fund mature, the proceeds will not be reinvested in bonds but instead will be held in cash and cash equivalents, including, without limitation, AMT-free tax-exempt municipal notes, variable rate demand notes and obligations, tender option bonds and municipal commercial paper. These cash equivalents may not be included in the Underlying Index. By August 31, 2013, the Underlying Index is expected to consist entirely of cash earned in this manner. Around the same time, the Fund will wind up and terminate, and its net assets will be distributed to then-current shareholders.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks</b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Credit Risk.</b> The Fund is subject to the risk that debt issuers and other counterparties may not honor their obligations or may have their debt downgraded by ratings agencies.<br/><br/><b>Declining Yield Risk.</b> During the final three months prior to the Fund&#8217;s planned termination date, its yield will generally tend to move toward prevailing tax-exempt money market rates, and may be lower than the yields of the bonds previously held by the Fund and lower than prevailing yields for bonds in the market.<br/><br/><b>Fluctuation of Yield and Liquidation Amount Risk.</b> The Fund, unlike a direct investment in a municipal bond that has a level coupon payment and a fixed payment at maturity, will make distributions of income that vary over time. It is expected that an investment in the Fund, if held through maturity, will produce aggregate returns comparable to a direct investment in municipal bonds of similar credit quality and maturity. Unlike a direct investment in municipal bonds, the breakdown of returns between Fund distributions and liquidation proceeds are not predictable at the time of your investment. For example, at times during the Fund&#8217;s existence it may make distributions at a greater (or lesser) rate than the coupon payments received on the Fund&#8217;s portfolio, which will result in the Fund returning a lesser (or greater) amount on liquidation than would otherwise be the case. The rate of Fund distribution payments may adversely affect the tax characterization of your returns from an investment in the Fund relative to a direct investment in municipal bonds. If the amount you receive as liquidation proceeds upon the Fund&#8217;s termination is higher or lower than your cost basis, you may experience a gain or loss for tax purposes.<br/><br/><b>Income Risk.</b> The Fund&#8217;s income may decline when interest rates fall. This decline can occur because the Fund must invest in lower-yielding bonds as bonds in its portfolio mature, bonds in the Underlying Index are substituted or the Fund otherwise needs to purchase additional bonds.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Interest Rate Risk.</b> An increase in interest rates may cause the value of fixed-income securities held by the Fund to decline.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The Fund invests in municipal bonds of issuers that are primarily state or local governments or agencies. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Liquidity Risk.</b> Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. This can reduce the Fund&#8217;s returns because the Fund may be unable to transact at advantageous times or prices. The Fund invests a significant portion of its portfolio in municipal securities, which may be less liquid than taxable bonds.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. The recent financial crisis has caused a decrease in the value and liquidity of many securities, including certain municipal securities, and has adversely affected many issuers of municipal securities and may continue to do so.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Municipal Securities Risk.</b> Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political or economic changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Municipal securities backed by current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets can be negatively affected by the inability to collect revenues for the project or from the assets.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tax Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund&#8217;s income will be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, the federal AMT or the federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income&#8221; (effective beginning in 2013).<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Year Ended December 31) </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Credit Risk.</b> The Fund is subject to the risk that debt issuers and other counterparties may not honor their obligations or may have their debt downgraded by ratings agencies.<br/><br/><b>Declining Yield Risk.</b> During the final three months prior to the Fund&#8217;s planned termination date, its yield will generally tend to move toward prevailing tax-exempt money market rates, and may be lower than the yields of the bonds previously held by the Fund and lower than prevailing yields for bonds in the market.<br/><br/><b>Fluctuation of Yield and Liquidation Amount Risk.</b> The Fund, unlike a direct investment in a municipal bond that has a level coupon payment and a fixed payment at maturity, will make distributions of income that vary over time. It is expected that an investment in the Fund, if held through maturity, will produce aggregate returns comparable to a direct investment in municipal bonds of similar credit quality and maturity. Unlike a direct investment in municipal bonds, the breakdown of returns between Fund distributions and liquidation proceeds are not predictable at the time of your investment. For example, at times during the Fund&#8217;s existence it may make distributions at a greater (or lesser) rate than the coupon payments received on the Fund&#8217;s portfolio, which will result in the Fund returning a lesser (or greater) amount on liquidation than would otherwise be the case. The rate of Fund distribution payments may adversely affect the tax characterization of your returns from an investment in the Fund relative to a direct investment in municipal bonds. If the amount you receive as liquidation proceeds upon the Fund&#8217;s termination is higher or lower than your cost basis, you may experience a gain or loss for tax purposes.<br/><br/><b>Income Risk.</b> The Fund&#8217;s income may decline when interest rates fall. This decline can occur because the Fund must invest in lower-yielding bonds as bonds in its portfolio mature, bonds in the Underlying Index are substituted or the Fund otherwise needs to purchase additional bonds.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders<br/><br/><b>Interest Rate Risk.</b> An increase in interest rates may cause the value of fixed-income securities held by the Fund to decline.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The Fund invests in municipal bonds of issuers that are primarily state or local governments or agencies. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Liquidity Risk.</b> Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. This can reduce the Fund&#8217;s returns because the Fund may be unable to transact at advantageous times or prices. The Fund invests a significant portion of its portfolio in municipal securities, which may be less liquid than taxable bonds.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. The recent financial crisis has caused a decrease in the value and liquidity of many securities, including certain municipal securities, and has adversely affected many issuers of municipal securities and may continue to do so.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Municipal Securities Risk.</b> Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political or economic changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Municipal securities backed by current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets can be negatively affected by the inability to collect revenues for the project or from the assets.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tax Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund&#8217;s income will be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, the federal AMT or the federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income&#8221; (effective beginning in 2013).<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<b>Performance Information</b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The best calendar quarter return during the period shown above was 0.96% in the 2nd quarter of 2011; the worst was 0.18% in the 4th quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).The best calendar quarter return during the period shown above was 1.56% in the 2nd quarter of 2011; the worst was 0.22% in the 4th quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns</b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b><b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>2010-01-072010-01-07<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediShares2017AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediShares2017AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediShares2016AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediShares2016AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> 2016 AMT-FREE MUNI TERM ETF<br/>Ticker: MUAE&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The iShares 2016 AMT-Free Muni Term ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P AMT-Free Municipal Series 2016 Index<sup>TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;). The Fund does not seek to return any predetermined amount at maturity.<b>Fees and Expenses </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> 2017 AMT-FREE MUNI TERM ETF<br/>Ticker: MUAF&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE ArcaThe following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a</b><br/><b>percentage of the value of your investments)</b>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Investment Objective </b><b>Fees and Expenses </b><b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. Fund expenses are calculated only through August 31, 2017 because the Fund is scheduled to cease operations and liquidate by that date. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 4% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of investment-grade, noncallable U.S. municipal bonds maturing in 2017. As of March 31, 2012, there were 1,624 issues in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Underlying Index includes municipal bonds primarily from issuers that are state or local governments or agencies (including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and U.S. territories such as the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam) such that the interest on the bonds is exempt from U.S. federal income taxes and the federal alternative minimum tax (&#8220;AMT&#8221;). Each bond must have a rating of at least BBB- by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Ratings Services, Baa3 by Moody&#8217;s Investors Service, Inc. (&#8220;Moody&#8217;s&#8221;), or BBB- by Fitch, Inc. and must have a minimum maturity par amount of $2 million to be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index. To remain in the Underlying Index, bonds must maintain a minimum par amount greater than or equal to $2 million as of each rebalancing date. All bonds in the Underlying Index will mature between June 1 and August 31 of the year referenced in the name of the Underlying Index. When a bond matures in the Underlying Index, an amount representing its value at maturity will be included in the Underlying Index throughout the remaining life of the Underlying Index, and any such amount will be assumed to earn a rate equal to the performance of the Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC&#8217;s, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), Weekly High Grade Index, which consists of Moody&#8217;s Investment Grade-1 municipal tax-exempt notes that are not subject to federal AMT. The Underlying Index is a market value weighted index and is rebalanced after the close on the last business day of each month.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability, duration, maturity or credit ratings and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its assets in the securities of its Underlying Index, except during the last months of the Fund&#8217;s operations, as described below. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in cash and cash equivalents (including money market funds affiliated with BFA), as well as in municipal bonds not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track its Underlying Index. The Fund will generally hold municipal bond securities issued by state and local municipalities whose interest payments are exempt from U.S. federal income tax, the federal AMT and, effective beginning in 2013, a federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income,&#8221; including dividends, interest and capital gains. In addition, the Fund may invest any cash assets in one or more affiliated municipal money market funds. In the last months of operation, as the bonds held by the Fund mature, the proceeds will not be reinvested in bonds but instead will be held in cash and cash equivalents, including, without limitation, AMT-free tax-exempt municipal notes, variable rate demand notes and obligations, tender option bonds and municipal commercial paper. These cash equivalents may not be included in the Underlying Index. By August 31, 2017, the Underlying Index is expected to consist entirely of cash earned in this manner. Around the same time, the Fund will wind up and terminate, and its net assets will be distributed to then-current shareholders.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Credit Risk.</b> The Fund is subject to the risk that debt issuers and other counterparties may not honor their obligations or may have their debt downgraded by ratings agencies.<br/><br/><b>Declining Yield Risk.</b> During the final three months prior to the Fund&#8217;s planned termination date, its yield will generally tend to move toward prevailing tax-exempt money market rates, and may be lower than the yields of the bonds previously held by the Fund and lower than prevailing yields for bonds in the market.<br/><br/><b>Fluctuation of Yield and Liquidation Amount Risk.</b> The Fund, unlike a direct investment in a municipal bond that has a level coupon payment and a fixed payment at maturity, will make distributions of income that vary over time. It is expected that an investment in the Fund, if held through maturity, will produce aggregate returns comparable to a direct investment in municipal bonds of similar credit quality and maturity. Unlike a direct investment in municipal bonds, the breakdown of returns between Fund distributions and liquidation proceeds are not predictable at the time of your investment. For example, at times during the Fund&#8217;s existence it may make distributions at a greater (or lesser) rate than the coupon payments received on the Fund&#8217;s portfolio, which will result in the Fund returning a lesser (or greater) amount on liquidation than would otherwise be the case. The rate of Fund distribution payments may adversely affect the tax characterization of your returns from an investment in the Fund relative to a direct investment in municipal bonds. If the amount you receive as liquidation proceeds upon the Fund&#8217;s termination is higher or lower than your cost basis, you may experience a gain or loss for tax purposes.<br/><br/><b>Income Risk.</b> The Fund&#8217;s income may decline when interest rates fall. This decline can occur because the Fund must invest in lower-yielding bonds as bonds in its portfolio mature, bonds in the Underlying Index are substituted or the Fund otherwise needs to purchase additional bonds.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Interest Rate Risk.</b> An increase in interest rates may cause the value of fixed-income securities held by the Fund to decline.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The Fund invests in municipal bonds of issuers that are primarily state or local governments or agencies. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Liquidity Risk.</b> Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. This can reduce the Fund&#8217;s returns because the Fund may be unable to transact at advantageous times or prices. The Fund invests a significant portion of its portfolio in municipal securities, which may be less liquid than taxable bonds.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. The recent financial crisis has caused a decrease in the value and liquidity of many securities, including certain municipal securities, and has adversely affected many issuers of municipal securities and may continue to do so.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Municipal Securities Risk.</b> Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political or economic changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Municipal securities backed by current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets can be negatively affected by the inability to collect revenues for the project or from the assets.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tax Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund&#8217;s income will be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, the federal AMT or the federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income&#8221; (effective beginning in 2013).<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Year Ended December 31) </b>The best calendar quarter return during the period shown above was 3.87% in the 2nd quarter of 2011; the worst was 0.14% in the 1st quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>3197169<b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. Fund expenses are calculated only through August 31, 2016 because the Fund is scheduled to cease operations and liquidate by that date. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:3197You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 1% of the average value of its portfolio.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comAfter-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).The Underlying Index measures the performance of investment-grade, noncallable U.S. municipal bonds maturing in 2016. As of March 31, 2012, there were 2,003 issues in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Underlying Index includes municipal bonds primarily from issuers that are state or local governments or agencies (including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and U.S. territories such as the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam) such that the interest on the bonds is exempt from U.S. federal income taxes and the federal alternative minimum tax (&#8220;AMT&#8221;). Each bond must have a rating of at least BBB- by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Ratings Services, Baa3 by Moody&#8217;s Investors Service, Inc. (&#8220;Moody&#8217;s&#8221;), or BBB- by Fitch, Inc. and must have a minimum maturity par amount of $2 million to be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index. To remain in the Underlying Index, bonds must maintain a minimum par amount greater than or equal to $2 million as of each rebalancing date. All bonds in the Underlying Index will mature between June 1 and August 31 of the year referenced in the name of the Underlying Index. When a bond matures in the Underlying Index, an amount representing its value at maturity will be included in the Underlying Index throughout the remaining life of the Underlying Index, and any such amount will be assumed to earn a rate equal to the performance of the Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC&#8217;s, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), Weekly High Grade Index, which consists of Moody&#8217;s Investment Grade-1 municipal tax- exempt notes that are not subject to federal AMT. The Underlying Index is a market value weighted index and is rebalanced after the close on the last business day of each month.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability, duration, maturity or credit ratings and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its assets in the securities of its Underlying Index, except during the last months of the Fund&#8217;s operations, as described below. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in cash and cash equivalents (including money market funds affiliated with BFA), as well as in municipal bonds not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track its Underlying Index. The Fund will generally hold municipal bond securities issued by state and local municipalities whose interest payments are exempt from U.S. federal income tax, the federal AMT and, effective beginning in 2013, a federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income,&#8221; including dividends, interest and capital gains. In addition, the Fund may invest any cash assets in one or more affiliated municipal money market funds. In the last months of operation, as the bonds held by the Fund mature, the proceeds will not be reinvested in bonds but instead will be held in cash and cash equivalents, including, without limitation, AMT-free tax-exempt municipal notes, variable rate demand notes and obligations, tender option bonds and municipal commercial paper. These cash equivalents may not be included in the Underlying Index. By August 31, 2016, the Underlying Index is expected to consist entirely of cash earned in this manner. Around the same time, the Fund will wind up and terminate, and its net assets will be distributed to then-current shareholders.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>2010-01-07As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk</b><b>. </b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Credit Risk.</b> The Fund is subject to the risk that debt issuers and other counterparties may not honor their obligations or may have their debt downgraded by ratings agencies.<br/><br/><b>Declining Yield Risk.</b> During the final three months prior to the Fund&#8217;s planned termination date, its yield will generally tend to move toward prevailing tax-exempt money market rates, and may be lower than the yields of the bonds previously held by the Fund and lower than prevailing yields for bonds in the market.<br/><br/><b>Fluctuation of Yield and Liquidation Amount Risk.</b> The Fund, unlike a direct investment in a municipal bond that has a level coupon payment and a fixed payment at maturity, will make distributions of income that vary over time. It is expected that an investment in the Fund, if held through maturity, will produce aggregate returns comparable to a direct investment in municipal bonds of similar credit quality and maturity. Unlike a direct investment in municipal bonds, the breakdown of returns between Fund distributions and liquidation proceeds are not predictable at the time of your investment. For example, at times during the Fund&#8217;s existence it may make distributions at a greater (or lesser) rate than the coupon payments received on the Fund&#8217;s portfolio, which will result in the Fund returning a lesser (or greater) amount on liquidation than would otherwise be the case. The rate of Fund distribution payments may adversely affect the tax characterization of your returns from an investment in the Fund relative to a direct investment in municipal bonds. If the amount you receive as liquidation proceeds upon the Fund&#8217;s termination is higher or lower than your cost basis, you may experience a gain or loss for tax purposes.<br/><br/><b>Income Risk. </b>The Fund&#8217;s income may decline when interest rates fall. This decline can occur because the Fund must invest in lower-yielding bonds as bonds in its portfolio mature, bonds in the Underlying Index are substituted or the Fund otherwise needs to purchase additional bonds.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Interest Rate Risk.</b> An increase in interest rates may cause the value of fixed-income securities held by the Fund to decline.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The Fund invests in municipal bonds of issuers that are primarily state or local governments or agencies. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Liquidity Risk.</b> Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. This can reduce the Fund&#8217;s returns because the Fund may be unable to transact at advantageous times or prices. The Fund invests a significant portion of its portfolio in municipal securities, which may be less liquid than taxable bonds.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. The recent financial crisis has caused a decrease in the value and liquidity of many securities, including certain municipal securities, and has adversely affected many issuers of municipal securities and may continue to do so.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Municipal Securities Risk.</b> Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political or economic changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Municipal securities backed by current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets can be negatively affected by the inability to collect revenues for the project or from the assets.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tax Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund&#8217;s income will be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, the federal AMT or the federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income&#8221; (effective beginning in 2013).<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiShares2017AMT-FreeMuniTermETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Year Ended December 31) </b>The best calendar quarter return during the period shown above was 3.44% in the 2nd quarter of 2011; the worst was 0.21% in the 1st quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>The Fund's total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2011-06-30worst2011-03-312010-01-07After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiShares2016AMT-FreeMuniTermETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediShares2017AMTFreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>
The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2011-06-30worst2011-03-31Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediShares2016AMTFreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediShares2018AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> 2018 AMT-FREE MUNI TERM ETF<br/>Ticker: MUAG&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares 2017 AMT-Free Muni Term ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P AMT-Free Municipal Series 2017 Index<sup>TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;). The Fund does not seek to return any predetermined amount at maturity.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediShares2019AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>The iShares 2018 AMT-Free Muni Term ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P AMT-Free Municipal Series 2018 Index<sup>TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;). The Fund does not seek to return any predetermined amount at maturity.<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a</b><br/><b>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. Fund expenses are calculated only through August 31, 2018 because the Fund is scheduled to cease operations and liquidate by that date. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>3197<b>Investment Objective </b><b>Fees and Expenses </b>The iShares 2019 AMT-Free Muni Term ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P AMT-Free Municipal Series 2019 Index<sup >TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;). The Fund does not seek to return any predetermined amount at maturity.The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. <br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of investment grade U.S. municipal bonds maturing in 2018. As of February 28, 2013, there were 1,715 issues in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Underlying Index includes municipal bonds primarily from issuers that are state or local governments or agencies (including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and U.S. territories such as the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam) such that the interest on the bonds is exempt from U.S. federal income taxes and the federal alternative minimum tax (&#8220;AMT&#8221;). Each bond must have a rating of at least BBB- by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Ratings Services, Baa3 by Moody&#8217;s Investors Service, Inc. (&#8220;Moody&#8217;s&#8221;), or BBB- by Fitch, Inc. and must have a minimum maturity par amount of $2 million to be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index. To remain in the Underlying Index, bonds must maintain a minimum par amount greater than or equal to $2 million as of each rebalancing date. All bonds in the Underlying Index will mature between June 1 and August 31 of the year referenced in the name of the Underlying Index. When a bond matures in the Underlying Index, an amount representing its value at maturity will be included in the Underlying Index throughout the remaining life of the Underlying Index, and any such amount will be assumed to earn a rate equal to the performance of the Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC&#8217;s, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), Weekly High Grade Index, which consists of Moody&#8217;s Investment Grade-1 municipal tax-exempt notes that are not subject to federal AMT. The Underlying Index is a market value weighted index and is rebalanced after the close on the last business day of each month.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability, duration, maturity or credit ratings and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its assets in the securities of its Underlying Index, except during the last months of the Fund&#8217;s operations, as described below. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in cash and cash equivalents (including money market funds affiliated with BFA), as well as in municipal bonds not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track its Underlying Index. The Fund will generally hold municipal bond securities issued by state and local municipalities whose interest payments are exempt from U.S. federal income tax, the federal AMT and, effective beginning in 2013, a federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income,&#8221; including dividends, interest and capital gains. In the last months of operation, as the bonds held by the Fund mature, the proceeds will not be reinvested in bonds but instead will be held in cash and cash equivalents, including without limitation money market funds affiliated with BFA, AMT-free tax-exempt municipal notes, variable rate demand notes and obligations, tender option bonds and municipal commercial paper. These cash equivalents may not be included in the Underlying Index. By August 31, 2018, the Underlying Index is expected to consist entirely of cash carried in this manner. Around the same time, the Fund will wind up and terminate, and its net assets will be distributed to then-current shareholders.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Example. </b><b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of investment-grade U.S. municipal bonds maturing in 2019. As of May 31, 2012, there were 1,157 issues in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Underlying Index includes municipal bonds primarily from issuers that are state or local governments or agencies (including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and U.S. territories such as the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam) such that the interest on the bonds is exempt from U.S. federal income taxes and the federal alternative minimum tax (&#8220;AMT&#8221;). Each bond must have a rating of at least BBB- by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Ratings Services, Baa3 by Moody&#8217;s Investors Service, Inc. (&#8220;Moody&#8217;s&#8221;), or BBB- by Fitch, Inc. and must have a minimum maturity par amount of $2 million to be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index. To remain in the Underlying Index, bonds must maintain a minimum par amount greater than or equal to $2 million as of each rebalancing date. All bonds in the Underlying Index will mature between June 1 and August 31 of the year referenced in the name of the Underlying Index. When a bond matures in the Underlying Index, an amount representing its value at maturity will be included in the Underlying Index throughout the remaining life of the Underlying Index, and any such amount will be assumed to earn a rate equal to the performance of the Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC&#8217;s, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), Weekly High Grade Index, which consists of Moody&#8217;s Investment Grade-1 municipal tax-exempt notes that are not subject to federal AMT. The Underlying Index is a market value weighted index and is rebalanced after the close on the last business day of each month.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability, duration, maturity or credit ratings and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its assets in the securities of its Underlying Index, except during the last months of the Fund&#8217;s operations, as described below. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in cash and cash equivalents (including money market funds affiliated with BFA), as well as in municipal bonds not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track its Underlying Index. The Fund will generally hold municipal bond securities issued by state and local municipalities whose interest payments are exempt from U.S. federal income tax, the federal AMT and, effective beginning in 2013, a federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income,&#8221; including dividends, interest and capital gains. In addition, the Fund may invest any cash assets in one or more affiliated municipal money market funds. In the last months of operation, as the bonds held by the Fund mature, the proceeds will not be reinvested in bonds but instead will be held in cash and cash equivalents, including without limitation AMT-free tax-exempt municipal notes, variable rate demand notes and obligations, tender option bonds and municipal commercial paper. These cash equivalents may not be included in the Underlying Index. By August 31, 2019, the Underlying Index is expected to consist entirely of cash carried in this manner. Around the same time, the Fund will wind up and terminate, and its net assets will be distributed to then-current shareholders.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> 2019 AMT-FREE MUNI TERM ETF<br/>Ticker: MUAH&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE ArcaAs with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Credit Risk.</b> The Fund is subject to the risk that debt issuers and other counterparties may not honor their obligations or may have their debt downgraded by ratings agencies.<br/><br/><b>Declining Yield Risk.</b> During the final three months prior to the Fund&#8217;s planned termination date, its yield will generally tend to move toward prevailing tax-exempt money market rates, and may be lower than the yields of the bonds previously held by the Fund and lower than prevailing yields for bonds in the market.<br/><br/><b>Fluctuation of Yield and Liquidation Amount Risk.</b> The Fund, unlike a direct investment in a municipal bond that has a level coupon payment and a fixed payment at maturity, will make distributions of income that vary over time. It is expected that an investment in the Fund, if held through maturity, will produce aggregate returns comparable to a direct investment in municipal bonds of similar credit quality and maturity. Unlike a direct investment in municipal bonds, the breakdown of returns between Fund distributions and liquidation proceeds are not predictable at the time of your investment. For example, at times during the Fund&#8217;s existence it may make distributions at a greater (or lesser) rate than the coupon payments received on the Fund&#8217;s portfolio, which will result in the Fund returning a lesser (or greater) amount on liquidation than would otherwise be the case. The rate of Fund distribution payments may adversely affect the tax characterization of your returns from an investment in the Fund relative to a direct investment in municipal bonds. If the amount you receive as liquidation proceeds upon the Fund&#8217;s termination is higher or lower than your cost basis, you may experience a gain or loss for tax purposes.<br/><br/><b>Income Risk.</b> The Fund&#8217;s income may decline when interest rates fall. This decline can occur because the Fund must invest in lower-yielding bonds as bonds in its portfolio mature, bonds in the Underlying Index are substituted or the Fund otherwise needs to purchase additional bonds.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions are likely to have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/><b>Interest Rate Risk. </b> An increase in interest rates may cause the value of fixed-income securities held by the Fund to decline.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The Fund invests in municipal bonds of issuers that are primarily state or local governments or agencies. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Liquidity Risk.</b> Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. This can reduce the Fund&#8217;s returns because the Fund may be unable to transact at advantageous times or prices. The Fund invests a significant portion of its portfolio in municipal securities, which may be less liquid than taxable bonds.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. The recent financial crisis has caused a decrease in the value and liquidity of many securities, including certain municipal securities, and has adversely affected many issuers of municipal securities and may continue to do so.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Municipal Securities Risk.</b> Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political or economic changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Municipal securities backed by current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets can be negatively affected by the inability to collect revenues for the project or from the assets.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tax Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund&#8217;s income will be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, the federal AMT or the federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income&#8221; (effective beginning in 2013).<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> The performance of the Fund may diverge from that of the Underlying Index. Because the Fund employs a representative sampling strategy, the Fund may experience tracking error to a greater extent than a fund that seeks to replicate an index.<br/><br/><b>Valuation Risk. </b> Because the bond market may be open on days when the Fund does not price its shares, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.<b>Performance Information </b>As of the date of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;), the Fund has been in operation for less than one full calendar year and therefore does not report its performance information.3197169You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Credit Risk.</b> The Fund is subject to the risk that debt issuers and other counterparties may not honor their obligations or may have their debt downgraded by ratings agencies.<br/><br/><b>Declining Yield Risk.</b> During the final three months prior to the Fund&#8217;s planned termination date, its yield will generally tend to move toward prevailing tax-exempt money market rates, and may be lower than the yields of the bonds previously held by the Fund and lower than prevailing yields for bonds in the market.<br/><br/><b>Fluctuation of Yield and Liquidation Amount Risk.</b> The Fund, unlike a direct investment in a municipal bond that has a level coupon payment and a fixed payment at maturity, will make distributions of income that vary over time. It is expected that an investment in the Fund, if held through maturity, will produce aggregate returns comparable to a direct investment in municipal bonds of similar credit quality and maturity. Unlike a direct investment in municipal bonds, the breakdown of returns between Fund distributions and liquidation proceeds are not predictable at the time of your investment. For example, at times during the Fund&#8217;s existence it may make distributions at a greater (or lesser) rate than the coupon payments received on the Fund&#8217;s portfolio, which will result in the Fund returning a lesser (or greater) amount on liquidation than would otherwise be the case. The rate of Fund distribution payments may adversely affect the tax characterization of your returns from an investment in the Fund relative to a direct investment in municipal bonds. If the amount you receive as liquidation proceeds upon the Fund&#8217;s termination is higher or lower than your cost basis, you may experience a gain or loss for tax purposes.<br/><br/><b>Income Risk. </b>The Fund&#8217;s income may decline when interest rates fall. This decline can occur because the Fund must invest in lower-yielding bonds as bonds in its portfolio mature, bonds in the Underlying Index are substituted or the Fund otherwise needs to purchase additional bonds.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Interest Rate Risk.</b> An increase in interest rates may cause the value of fixed-income securities held by the Fund to decline.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The Fund invests in municipal bonds of issuers that are primarily state or local governments or agencies. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Liquidity Risk.</b> Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. This can reduce the Fund&#8217;s returns because the Fund may be unable to transact at advantageous times or prices. The Fund invests a significant portion of its portfolio in municipal securities, which may be less liquid than taxable bonds.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. The recent financial crisis has caused a decrease in the value and liquidity of many securities, including certain municipal securities, and has adversely affected many issuers of municipal securities and may continue to do so.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Municipal Securities Risk.</b> Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political or economic changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Municipal securities backed by current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets can be negatively affected by the inability to collect revenues for the project or from the assets.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tax Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund&#8217;s income will be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, the federal AMT or the federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income&#8221; (effective beginning in 2013).<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> The performance of the Fund may diverge from that of the Underlying Index. Because the Fund employs a representative sampling strategy, the Fund may experience tracking error to a greater extent than a fund that seeks to replicate an index.As of the date of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;), the Fund has been in operation for less than one full calendar year and therefore does not report its performance information.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediShares2018AMTFreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>
As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<b>Performance Information </b>As of the date of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;), the Fund has been in operation for less than one full calendar year and therefore does not report its performance information.As of the date of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;), the Fund has been in operation for less than one full calendar year and therefore does not report its performance information.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediShares2019AMTFreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>
iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> CORE S&amp;P TOTAL U.S. STOCK<br/>MARKET ETF<br/>Ticker: ITOT&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Core S&amp;P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Composite 1500<sup>&#174;</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a</b><br/><b>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 5% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index comprises the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup>, S&amp;P MidCap 400<sup>&#174;</sup> and S&amp;P SmallCap 600<sup>&#174;</sup>, which together represent approximately 92% of the total U.S. equity market as of March 31, 2012. The securities in the Underlying Index are weighted based on the total float-adjusted market value of their outstanding shares. Securities with higher total market values have a larger representation in the Underlying Index. The S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> measures the performance of the large-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. As of March 31, 2012, the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> included approximately 76% of the market capitalization of all U.S. equity securities. The S&amp;P MidCap 400<sup>&#174;</sup> measures the performance of the mid-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. The securities in the S&amp;P MidCap 400<sup>&#174;</sup> have a market capitalization between $1 billion and $4.4 billion (which may fluctuate depending on the overall level of the equity markets) and are selected for liquidity and industry group representation. The securities in the S&amp;P SmallCap 600<sup>&#174;</sup> have a market capitalization between $300 million and $1.4 billion (which may fluctuate depending on the overall level of the equity markets) and the S&amp;P SmallCap 600<sup>&#174;</sup> measures the performance of publicly-traded securities in the small-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, financial, health care, industrials and information technology companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk.</b> The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk.</b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk.</b> Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Health Care Sector Risk.</b> The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Industrials Sector Risk. </b> The industrials sector may be affected by changes in the supply and demand for products and services, product obsolescence, claims for environmental damage or product liability and general economic conditions, among other factors.<br/><br/><b>Information Technology Sector Risk.</b> Information technology companies face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Mid-Capitalization Companies Risk. </b> The Fund may invest in the securities of mid-capitalization companies. Compared to large-capitalization companies, mid-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Small-Capitalization Companies Risk.</b> The Fund may invest in the securities of small-capitalization companies. Compared to mid- and large-capitalization companies, small-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<b>Year by Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 16.24% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.36% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>7234090iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> CORE S&P 500 ETF<br/>Ticker: IVV &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Core S&amp;P 500 ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b>The expense information in the table above has been restated to reflect current fees.The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 5% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Portfolio Turnover.</b><b>Example.</b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:72004-01-20234090<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. As of March&nbsp;31, 2012, the Underlying Index included approximately 76% of the market capitalization of all publicly-traded U.S. equity securities. The component stocks are weighted according to the float-adjusted market value of their outstanding shares. Components primarily include energy, financial, health care and information technology companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard&nbsp;&amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Health Care Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Information Technology Sector Risk.</b> Information technology companies face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information</b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31)</b>The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 15.92% in the 2nd&nbsp;quarter of 2009; the worst was -21.89% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-06-30The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.worst2008-12-311-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.www.iShares.com1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December&nbsp;31, 2011) </b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.2000-05-15The expense information in the table above has been restated to reflect current fees.The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-06-30worst2008-12-31<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesCoreSAndP500ETF column period compact * ~</div>
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You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesNasdaqBiotechnologyETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesNasdaqBiotechnologyETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussell1000ETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussell1000ETF column period compact * ~</div>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL 1000 ETF<br/>Ticker: IWB&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Russell 1000 ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell 1000 Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. <br /><br />You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses </b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/> percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:154885192<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 6% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> NASDAQ BIOTECHNOLOGY ETF <br/>Ticker: IBB&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NASDAQ<b>Investment Objective</b><b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses <br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a <br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.49154269604As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>. </b> Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /> <b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Technology Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>2001-02-05<b>Example.</b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).<b>Portfolio Turnover.</b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 19% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index contains securities of NASDAQ<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> listed companies that are classified according to the Industry Classification Benchmark as either biotechnology or pharmaceuticals and that also meet other eligibility criteria determined by The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. (&#8220;NASDAQ OMX&#8221;), including minimum market capitalization and liquidity requirements. Components primarily include biotechnology, health care and pharmaceuticals companies, and may change over time. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is NASDAQ OMX.<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Biotechnology Sector Risk. </b>Biotechnology companies face intense competition and the potential for rapid product obsolescence. Biotechnology companies may be adversely affected by the loss or impairment of intellectual property rights or changes in government regulations.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Health Care Sector Risk. </b>The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Non-Diversification Risk. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Pharmaceuticals Industry Risk.</b> Companies in the pharmaceuticals industry may be affected by industry competition, dependencies on a limited number of products, obsolescence of products, government approvals and regulations, loss or impairment of intellectual property rights and litigation regarding product liability.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<b>Non-Diversification Risk. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-06-30best2003-06-30worst2008-12-31worst2002-06-30The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 31.16% in the 2nd quarter of 2003; the worst was -34.06% in the 2nd quarter of 2002.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 16.44% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.44% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.www.iShares.com1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesNasdaqBiotechnologyETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesNasdaqBiotechnologyETF column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2011-06-30<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussell1000GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussell1000GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div>worst2011-12-31After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors Who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual Retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussell1000ETF column period compact * ~</div>
2064113255<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussell1000ETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussell1000ValueETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussell1000ValueETF column period compact * ~</div>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. The Underlying Index includes issuers representing approximately 92% of the market capitalization of all publicly-traded U.S. equity securities. The Underlying Index is a float-adjusted capitalization-weighted index of equity securities issued by the approximately 1,000 largest issuers in the Russell 3000<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> Index. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index represented approximately 93% of the total market capitalization of the Russell 3000 Index. Total market capitalization reflects all equity shares outstanding, while total market value reflects float-adjusted capitalizations based on equity shares available for general investment. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, financial and technology companies, and may change over time.<br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL 1000 VALUE ETF <br/>Ticker: IWD&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell 1000 Value Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).2000-05-22<b>Fees and Expenses </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL 1000 GROWTH ETF <br/>Ticker: IWF&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. &#8220;Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses&#8221; reflect the Fund&#8217;s pro rata share of the fees and expenses incurred by investing in other investment companies. The impact of Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses is included in the total returns of the Fund. Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not used to calculate the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;) and are not included in the calculation of the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:2000-05-15The iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell 1000 Growth Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a</b><br/><b>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses <br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/> percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 19% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell 1000<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> Index, which measures the performance of the large-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index represented approximately 76% of the total market value of the Russell 1000 Index. The Underlying Index measures the performance of equity securities of Russell 1000 Index issuers with relatively higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, producer durables and technology companies, and may change over time. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. </b>The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Growth Securities Risk. </b>The Fund invests in growth securities, which may be more volatile than other types of investments.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Producer Durables Sector Risk. </b>The producer durables sector includes companies involved in the design, manufacture or distribution of industrial durables such as electrical equipment and components, industrial products, and housing and telecommunications equipment. These companies may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies and politics, consolidation, excess capacity, and consumer demands, spending, tastes and preferences.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Technology Sector Risk. </b>Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).2268118The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.2681-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 21% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization value sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell 1000<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> Index, which measures the performance of the large-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index represented approximately 74% of the total market value of the Russell 1000 Index. The Underlying Index measures the performance of equity securities of Russell 1000 Index issuers with relatively lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth. Components primarily include energy, financial, health care and utilities companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/> The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-06-30worst2008-12-31The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 16.23% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.77% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns <br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussell1000GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussell1000GrowthETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s NAV, trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Health Care Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br/><br/><b>Utilities Sector Risk. </b>The utilities sector is subject to significant government regulation and oversight. Companies in the utilities sector may be adversely affected due to increases in fuel and operating costs, rising costs of financing capital construction and the cost of complying with regulations, among other factors.<br/><br/><b>Value Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities issued by companies that may be perceived as undervalued may fail to appreciate for long periods of time and may never realize their full potential value.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Prospectus.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediShares2013AMTFreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiShares2013AMT-FreeMuniTermETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-09-30worst2008-12-31The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 18.18% in the 3rd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.13% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussell2000ETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussell2000ETF column period compact * ~</div>2000-05-22The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. &#8220;Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses&#8221; reflect the Fund&#8217;s pro rata share of the fees and expenses incurred by investing in other investment companies. The impact of Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses is included in the total returns of the Fund. Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not used to calculate the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;) and are not included in the calculation of the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<br /><br />You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussell3000GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussell3000GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussell1000ValueETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Example. </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussell1000ValueETF column period compact * ~</div>
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:2474130293<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 21% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the small-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. The Underlying Index includes issuers representing approximately 10% of the total market capitalization of all publicly-traded U.S. equity securities. The Underlying Index is a float-adjusted capitalization-weighted index of equity securities issued by the approximately 2000 smallest issuers in the Russell 3000<sup>&#174;</sup> Index. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index represented approximately $1.4 trillion of the total market capitalization of the Russell 3000 Index. Total market capitalization reflects all equity shares outstanding, while total market value reflects float-adjusted capitalizations based on equity shares available for general investment. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, financial, producer durables and technology companies, and may change over time.<br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s NAV, trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk</b>. Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk.</b> The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>. </b> Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk</b>. As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Producer Durables Sector Risk. </b> The producer durables sector includes companies involved in the design, manufacture or distribution of industrial durables such as electrical equipment and components, industrial products, and housing and telecommunications equipment. These companies may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies and politics, consolidation, excess capacity, and consumer demands, spending, tastes and preferences.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Small-Capitalization Companies Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund will invest in the securities of small-capitalization companies. Compared to mid- and large-capitalization companies, small-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br /><br /><b>Technology Sector Risk</b><b>. </b> Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Prospectus.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>2680141318The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2003-06-30worst2008-12-31<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesMicro-CapETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesMicro-CapETF column period compact * ~</div>www.iShares.com1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 23.34% in the 2nd quarter of 2003; the worst was -25.98% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>2000-07-24iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL 3000 GROWTH ETF <br/>Ticker: IWZ&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Russell 3000 Growth ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell 3000 Growth Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> MICRO-CAP ETF <br/>Ticker: IWC&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE ArcaThe following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Investment Objective </b><b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses <br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a <br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b>The iShares Micro-Cap ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell Microcap Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Example. </b><b>Fees and Expenses </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 20% of the average value of its portfolio.The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. &#8220;Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses&#8221; reflect the Fund&#8217;s pro rata share of the fees and expenses incurred by investing in other investment companies. The impact of Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses is included in the total returns of the Fund. Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not used to calculate the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;) and are not included in the calculation of the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the growth sector of the broad U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell 3000<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> Index, representing, as of March 31, 2012, approximately 66% of the total market value of the Russell 3000 Index. The Underlying Index measures the performance of equity securities of Russell 3000 Index issuers with relatively higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth. The Russell 3000 Index is a float-adjusted capitalization-weighted index of the largest public issuers domiciled in the U.S. and its territories. Total market capitalization reflects all equity shares outstanding, while total market value reflects float-adjusted capitalizations based on equity shares available for general investment. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, producer durables and technology companies, and may change over time. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses </b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a </b><br/><b>percentage of the value of your investments)As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. </b>The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Growth Securities Risk. </b>The Fund invests in growth securities, which may be more volatile than other types of investments.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Mid-Capitalization Companies Risk.</b> The Fund may invest in the securities of mid-capitalization companies. Compared to large-capitalization companies, mid-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Producer Durables Sector Risk. </b>The producer durables sector includes companies involved in the design, manufacture or distribution of industrial durables such as electrical equipment and components, industrial products, and housing and telecommunications equipment. These companies may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies and politics,consolidation, excess capacity, and consumer demands, spending, tastes and preferences.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Small-Capitalization Companies Risk.</b> The Fund may invest in the securities of small-capitalization companies. Compared to mid- and large-capitalization companies, small-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br /><br /><b>Technology Sector Risk. </b>Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Example. </b><b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:70221384You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:859<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 31% of the average value of its portfolio.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-06-30worst2008-12-31iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL 2000 ETF<br/>Ticker: IWM&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE ArcaAs with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell 2000 Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 16.73% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -23.15% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Fees and Expenses </b><b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).The Underlying Index measures the performance of the microcap sector of the U.S. equity market. The Underlying Index is a float-adjusted capitalization-weighted index and includes equity securities issued by issuers with total market capitalizations ranging from approximately $30 million to $668 million, although this range may change from time to time. The Underlying Index consists of approximately the 1,000 smallest issuers in the Russell 3000<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> Index plus the next smallest 1,000 issuers in the equity universe as determined by Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;). As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index includes issuers representing approximately 3% of the total market capitalization of all publicly-traded U.S. equity securities. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, financial, health care, producer durables and technology companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Russell.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses </b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/> percentage of the value of your investments)</b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussell3000GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div>
1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussell3000GrowthETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Investment Objective </b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).2000-05-22Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.The iShares Russell 3000 Value ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell 3000 Value Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2011-06-30worstThe following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:2011-12-31<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussell3000ETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussell3000ETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussell2000ETF column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussell2000ETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s NAV, trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk.</b> The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Health Care Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Microcap Companies Risk. </b>Stock prices of microcap companies are significantly more volatile, and more vulnerable to adverse business and economic developments, than those of larger companies. Microcap stocks may also be thinly traded, making it difficult for the Fund to buy and sell them.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Producer Durables Sector Risk. </b>The producer durables sector includes companies involved in the design, manufacture or distribution of industrial durables such as electrical equipment and components, industrial products, and housing and telecommunications equipment. These companies may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies and politics, consolidation, excess capacity, and consumer demands, spending, tastes and preferences.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Technology Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Prospectus.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31)</b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-06-30<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussellMid-CapGrowthETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussellMid-CapGrowthETF column period compact * ~</div>worst2008-12-31The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 23.89% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -28.31% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediShares2014AMTFreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>
The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/> percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b><b>Investment Objective </b><b>Fees and Expenses </b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:2680141318<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiShares2014AMT-FreeMuniTermETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL 3000 VALUE ETF<br/>Ticker: IWW&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediShares2014AMTFreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Year-by-Year Returns (Year Ended December 31)</b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussellTop200ETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussellTop200ETF column period compact * ~</div>20<b>Example. </b>64113255This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:2680141318<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 21% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>2000-05-22iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL 3000 ETF <br/>Ticker: IWV&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Russell 3000 ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell 3000 Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The Underlying Index measures the performance of the value sector of the broad U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell 3000<sup>&#174;</sup> Index. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index represents approximately 64% of the total market value of the Russell 3000 Index. The Underlying Index measures the performance of equity securities of Russell 3000 Index issuers with relatively lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth. The Russell 3000 Index is a float-adjusted capitalization-weighted index of the largest public issuers domiciled in the U.S. and its territories. Total market capitalization reflects all equity shares outstanding, while total market value reflects float-adjusted capitalizations based on equity shares available for general investment. Components primarily include energy, financial, health care and utilities companies, and may change over time. <br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br/><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses <br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a <br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 6% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the broad U.S. equity market. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index included issuers representing approximately 98% of the total market capitalization of all publicly-traded U.S.-domiciled equity securities. The Underlying Index is a float-adjusted capitalization-weighted index of the largest issuers determined to have the U.S. as their primary country of risk. Total market capitalization reflects all equity shares outstanding, while total market value reflects float-adjusted capitalizations based on equity shares available for general investment. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, financial and technology companies, and may change over time. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. </b>The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Financial Sector Risk. </b>Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Small-Capitalization Companies Risk. </b>The Fund may invest in the securities of small-capitalization companies. Compared to mid- and large-capitalization companies, small-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br /><br /><b>Technology Sector Risk. </b>Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.2005-08-12As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Portfolio Turnover. </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussellTop200GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussellTop200GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 29% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:best2009-06-30As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Energy Sector Risk.</b> The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>.</b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Health Care Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk</b><b>.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Small-Capitalization Companies Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund may invest in the securities of small-capitalization companies. Compared to mid- and large-capitalization companies, small-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br/><br/><b>Utilities Sector Risk. </b> The utilities sector is subject to significant government regulation and oversight. Companies in the utilities sector may be adversely affected due to increases in fuel and operating costs, rising costs of financing capital construction and the cost of complying with regulations, among other factors.<br/><br/><b>Value Securities Risk</b><b>.</b> Securities issued by companies that may be perceived as undervalued may fail to appreciate for long periods of time and may never realize their full potential value.worst2008-12-31<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not used to calculate the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;) and are not included in the calculation of the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The Underlying Index measures the performance of the mid-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell Midcap<sup>&#174;</sup> Index, which measures the performance of the mid-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index represented approximately 64% of the total market value of the Russell Midcap Index. The Underlying Index measures the performance of equity securities of Russell Midcap Index issuers with higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth. The Russell Midcap Index is a float-adjusted, capitalization-weighted index of the 800 smallest issuers in the Russell 1000<sup>&#174;</sup> and includes securities issued by issuers which range in size between approximately $1.6 billion and $18.3 billion, although this range may change from time to time. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, producer durables and technology companies, and may change over time.<br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 16.76% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.74% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussell3000ETF column period compact * ~</div>
1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussell3000ETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. </b>The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Growth Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund invests in growth securities, which may be more volatile than other types of investments.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Mid-Capitalization Companies Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund invests in the securities of mid-capitalization companies. Compared to large-capitalization companies, mid-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Producer Durables Sector Risk. </b> The producer durables sector includes companies involved in the design, manufacture or distribution of industrial durables such as electrical equipment and components, industrial products, and housing and telecommunications equipment. These companies may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies and politics, consolidation, excess capacity, and consumer demands, spending, tastes and preferences.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Technology Sector Risk</b><b>. </b> Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b><b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesMicro-CapETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL TOP 200 GROWTH ETF <br/>Ticker: IWY&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Russell Top 200 Growth ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell Top 200 Growth Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. <br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:2000-07-24<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 18% of the average value of its portfolio.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesMicroCapETF column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediShares2015AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediShares2015AMT-FreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>The Underlying Index is a style factor weighted index that measures the performance of the largest capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the Russell Top 200<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> Index, which measures the performance of the largest capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. The Underlying Index measures the performance of equity securities of Russell Top 200 Index issuers with relatively higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index represented approximately 67% of the total market value of the Russell Top 200 Index. Many issuers are represented in both the Russell Top 200 Growth Index and the Russell Top 200<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> Value Index. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, producer durables and technology companies, and may change over time. <br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> 2015 AMT-FREE MUNI TERM ETF<br/>Ticker: MUAD&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE ArcabestYou may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:2009-06-30worst<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Investment Objective</b>2008-12-31The iShares 2015 AMT-Free Muni Term ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P AMT-Free Municipal Series 2015 Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;). The Fund does not seek to return any predetermined amount at maturity.<b>Fees and Expenses</b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b>www.iShares.com<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 20.58% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -27.38% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b><b>Example.</b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. Fund expenses are calculated only through August 31, 2015 because the Fund is scheduled to cease operations and liquidate by that date. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.3197The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.<b>Portfolio Turnover.</b>Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 0% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies</b>2001-07-17As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk</b>. The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Growth Securities Risk. </b>The Fund invests in growth securities, which may be more volatile than other types of investments.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Producer Durables Sector Risk. </b>The producer durables sector includes companies involved in the design, manufacture or distribution of industrial durables such as electrical equipment and components, industrial products, and housing and telecommunications equipment. These companies may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies and politics, consolidation, excess capacity, and consumer demands, spending, tastes and preferences.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Technology Sector Risk. </b>Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<b>Performance Information </b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31)</b>Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).www.iShares.comThe Underlying Index measures the performance of investment-grade, noncallable U.S. municipal bonds maturing in 2015. As of March 31, 2012, there were 2,399 issues in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Underlying Index includes municipal bonds primarily from issuers that are state or local governments or agencies (including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and U.S. territories such as the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam) such that the interest on the bonds is exempt from U.S. federal income taxes and the federal alternative minimum tax (&#8220;AMT&#8221;). Each bond must have a rating of at least BBB- by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Ratings Services, Baa3 by Moody&#8217;s Investors Service, Inc. (&#8220;Moody&#8217;s&#8221;), or BBB- by Fitch, Inc. and must have a minimum maturity par amount of $2 million to be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index. To remain in the Underlying Index, bonds must maintain a minimum par amount greater than or equal to $2 million as of each rebalancing date. All bonds in the Underlying Index will mature between June 1 and August 31 of the year referenced in the name of the Underlying Index. When a bond matures in the Underlying Index, an amount representing its value at maturity will be included in the Underlying Index throughout the remaining life of the Underlying Index, and any such amount will be assumed to earn a rate equal to the performance of the Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC&#8217;s, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), Weekly High Grade Index, which consists of Moody&#8217;s Investment Grade-1 municipal tax-exempt notes that are not subject to federal AMT. The Underlying Index is a market value weighted index and is rebalanced after the close on the last business day of each month.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability, duration, maturity or credit ratings and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its assets in the securities of its Underlying Index, except during the last months of the Fund&#8217;s operations, as described below. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in cash and cash equivalents (including money market funds affiliated with BFA), as well as in municipal bonds not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track its Underlying Index. The Fund will generally hold municipal bond securities issued by state and local municipalities whose interest payments are exempt from U.S. federal income tax, the federal AMT and, effective beginning in 2013, a federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income,&#8221; including dividends, interest and capital gains. In addition, the Fund may invest any cash assets in one or more affiliated municipal money market funds. In the last months of operation, as the bonds held by the Fund mature, the proceeds will not be reinvested in bonds but instead will be held in cash and cash equivalents, including, without limitation, AMT-free tax-exempt municipal notes, variable rate demand notes and obligations, tender option bonds and municipal commercial paper. These cash equivalents may not be included in the Underlying Index. By August 31, 2015, the Underlying Index is expected to consist entirely of cash earned in this manner. Around the same time, the Fund will wind up and terminate, and its net assets will be distributed to then-current shareholders.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<b>Summary of Principal Risks</b>The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 12.30% in the 3rd quarter of 2010; the worst was -12.33% in the 2nd quarter of 2010. <br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 18.51% in the 3rd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.36% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> RUSSELL MID-CAP GROWTH ETF<br/>Ticker: IWP&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussellMidCapGrowthETF column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a</b><br/><b>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussellMid-CapGrowthETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that state, region, municipality, market, project type or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Credit Risk.</b> The Fund is subject to the risk that debt issuers and other counterparties may not honor their obligations or may have their debt downgraded by ratings agencies.<br/><br/><b>Declining Yield Risk.</b> During the final three months prior to the Fund&#8217;s planned termination date, its yield will generally tend to move toward prevailing tax-exempt money market rates, and may be lower than the yields of the bonds previously held by the Fund and lower than prevailing yields for bonds in the market.<br/><br/><b>Fluctuation of Yield and Liquidation Amount Risk.</b> The Fund, unlike a direct investment in a municipal bond that has a level coupon payment and a fixed payment at maturity, will make distributions of income that vary over time. It is expected that an investment in the Fund, if held through maturity, will produce aggregate returns comparable to a direct investment in municipal bonds of similar credit quality and maturity. Unlike a direct investment in municipal bonds, the breakdown of returns between Fund distributions and liquidation proceeds are not predictable at the time of your investment. For example, at times during the Fund&#8217;s existence it may make distributions at a greater (or lesser) rate than the coupon payments received on the Fund&#8217;s portfolio, which will result in the Fund returning a lesser (or greater) amount on liquidation than would otherwise be the case. The rate of Fund distribution payments may adversely affect the tax characterization of your returns from an investment in the Fund relative to a direct investment in municipal bonds. If the amount you receive as liquidation proceeds upon the Fund&#8217;s termination is higher or lower than your cost basis, you may experience a gain or loss for tax purposes.<br/><br/><b>Income Risk.</b> The Fund&#8217;s income may decline when interest rates fall. This decline can occur because the Fund must invest in lower-yielding bonds as bonds in its portfolio mature, bonds in the Underlying Index are substituted or the Fund otherwise needs to purchase additional bonds.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Interest Rate Risk.</b> An increase in interest rates may cause the value of fixed-income securities held by the Fund to decline.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The Fund invests in municipal bonds of issuers that are primarily state or local governments or agencies. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Liquidity Risk.</b> Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. This can reduce the Fund&#8217;s returns because the Fund may be unable to transact at advantageous times or prices. The Fund invests a significant portion of its portfolio in municipal securities, which may be less liquid than taxable bonds.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. The recent financial crisis has caused a decrease in the value and liquidity of many securities, including certain municipal securities, and has adversely affected many issuers of municipal securities and may continue to do so.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Municipal Securities Risk.</b> Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political or economic changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Municipal securities backed by current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets can be negatively affected by the inability to collect revenues for the project or from the assets.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tax Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund&#8217;s income will be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, the federal AMT or the federal Medicare contribution tax of 3.8% on &#8220;net investment income&#8221; (effective beginning in 2013).<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<b>Performance Information</b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Year Ended December 31) </b>Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.2064113255The best calendar quarter return during the period shown above was 2.42% in the 2nd quarter of 2011; the worst was 0.36% in the 4th quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns</b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>best2009-09-30worst2008-12-31The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months endedThe Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-302012-06-30best2010-09-30worst2010-06-302009-09-22You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, and securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussell3000ValueETF column period compact * ~</div>
www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussell3000ValueETF column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussell3000ValueETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussell3000ValueETF column period compact * ~</div>
After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2011-06-30worst2011-12-312010-01-07The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> RUSSELL TOP 200 ETF <br/>Ticker: IWL&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Russell Top 200 ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell Top 200<sup>&#174;</sup> Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediShares2015AMTFreeMuniTermETF column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 7% of the average value of its portfolio.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiShares2015AMT-FreeMuniTermETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
154885192<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index is a float-adjusted, capitalization-weighted index that measures the performance of the largest capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. The Underlying Index includes securities issued by the approximately 200 largest issuers in the Russell 3000<sup>&#174;</sup> Index representing approximately 68% of the market capitalization of all publicly-traded U.S. equity securities. As of March&nbsp;31, 2012, the Underlying Index represented approximately 64% of the total market capitalization of the Russell 3000 Index. Total market capitalization reflects all equity shares outstanding, while total market value reflects float-adjusted capitalizations based on equity shares available for general investment. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, energy, financial, health care and technology companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Frank Russell Company (&#8220;Russell&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk.</b><br/>The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br/><br/><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Health Care Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Technology Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December&nbsp;31)</b>The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 11.58% in the 4th&nbsp;quarter of 2011; the worst was -12.81% in the 3rd quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2011-12-31worst2011-09-30<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussellTop200GrowthETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
www.iShares.com1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.2009-09-22Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not used to calculate the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;) and are not included in the calculation of the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussellTop200ValueETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussellTop200ValueETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussellTop200GrowthETF column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesRussellTop200ETF column period compact * ~</div>
You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesRussellTop200ETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesRussellMid-CapValueETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesRussellMid-CapValueETF column period compact * ~</div><b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares S&amp;P 100 ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P 100<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/> percentage of the value of your investments)</b>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> S&amp;P 500 GROWTH ETF<br/>Ticker: IVW&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares S&amp;P 500 Growth ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> Growth Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a</b><br/><b>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:1858101230iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> S&P 500 VALUE ETF<br/>Ticker: IVE&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares S&amp;P 500 Value ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> Value Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesAsia50ETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesAsia50ETF column period compact * ~</div><b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 23% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b>The iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell Midcap Growth Index (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Example. </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> ASIA 50 ETF<br/>Ticker: AIA&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE ArcaThis Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Investment Objective </b>1858<b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:The iShares Asia 50 ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Asia 50<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).10123020<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesEuropeETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesEuropeETF column period compact * ~</div>64<b>Fees and Expenses </b>113255The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The Underlying Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization growth sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> and consists of those stocks in the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> exhibiting the strongest growth characteristics, as determined by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), representing approximately 55% of the market capitalization of the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> as of March 31, 2012. Components primarily include consumer staples, health care and information technology companies, and may change over time. <br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br/><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 22% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Portfolio Turnover. </b><b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a</b><br/><b>percentage of the value of your investments)</b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 7% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b><b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> and consists of blue chip stocks from diverse industries in the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> with exchange listed options. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index represented approximately 53% of the market capitalization of U.S. equities. Components primarily include consumer staples, energy, financial and information technology companies, and may change over time. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Example. </b><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobal100ETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobal100ETF column period compact * ~</div>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:51160iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> EUROPE ETF<br/>Ticker: IEV&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca280<b>Investment Objective</b>628The iShares Europe ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Europe 350<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses</b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk.</b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer or issuers in a particular country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer or issuers, country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Staples Sector Risk.</b> The consumer staples sector may be affected by marketing campaigns, changes in consumer demands, government regulations and changes in commodity prices.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>.</b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Growth Securities Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund invests in growth securities, which may be more volatile than other types of investments.<br /><br /><b>Health Care Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Information Technology Sector Risk.</b> Information technology companies face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk</b><b>.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Performance Information </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of the large-capitalization value sector of the U.S. equity market. It is a subset of the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> and consists of those stocks in the S&amp;P 500<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">&#174;</sup> exhibiting the strongest value characteristics, as determined by Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;), representing approximately 45% of the market capitalization of the S&amp;P 500<sup>&#174;</sup> as of March 31, 2012. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, energy, financial, industrials and information technology companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 8% of the average value of its portfolio.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b><b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Example.</b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:61<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>192335750The Underlying Index is a free float-adjusted, market capitalization-weighted index that is designed to measure the performance of the 50 leading companies listed in four Asian countries or regions: Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan. The Fund will concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to approximately the same extent as the Underlying Index is so concentrated. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index had a total market capitalization of approximately $1.1 billion. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, energy, financial and information technology companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Portfolio Turnover.</b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 7% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies</b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Staples Sector Risk. </b> The consumer staples sector may be affected by marketing campaigns, changes in consumer demands, government regulations and changes in commodity prices.<br /><br /><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b> The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>. </b> Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Information Technology Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> Information technology companies face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular issuer or issuers in a particular country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that issuer or issuers, country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. </b>The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br/><br/><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk.</b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk.</b> Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Industrials Sector Risk. </b>The industrials sector may be affected by changes in the supply and demand for products and services, product obsolescence, claims for environmental damage or product liability and general economic conditions, among other factors.<br/><br/><b>Information Technology Sector Risk. </b>Information technology companies face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br/><br/><b>Value Securities Risk. </b>Securities issued by companies that may be perceived as undervalued may fail to appreciate for long periods of time and may never realize their full potential value.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The Underlying Index measures the performance of the stocks of leading companies in the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The market capitalization of constituent companies is adjusted to reflect only those stocks that are available to non-U.S. investors. The stocks in the Underlying Index are chosen for market size, liquidity, industry group representation and geographic diversity. Components primarily include consumer staples, energy, financial and health care companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Performance Information </b><b>Summary of Principal Risks</b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 14.54% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -20.23% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>41128224505<b>Investment Objective </b>The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 18.76% in the 2nd quarter of 2003; the worst was -23.81% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 14.73% in the 2nd quarter of 2003; the worst was -20.11% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).The iShares Global 100 ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Global 100<sup>TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk.</b> The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br/><br/><b>Currency Risk</b><b>. </b>Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br/><br/><b>Custody Risk</b><b>. </b>Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br/><br/><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Geographic Risk</b><b>. </b>A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Information Technology Sector Risk.</b> Information technology companies face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Lack of Natural Resources Risk</b><b>. </b>Certain economies to which the Fund may be exposed have few natural resources. Any fluctuation or shortage in the commodity markets could have a negative impact on those economies.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>Asian Structural Risk</b>.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Reliance on Trading Partners Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund invests in countries whose economies are heavily dependent upon trading with key partners. Any reduction in this trading may have an adverse impact on the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br/><br/><b>Risk of Investing in China</b><b>. </b>The Fund&#8217;s investment exposure to China subjects the Fund to risks specific to China. China may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability. China is a developing market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Over the past 25 years, the Chinese government has undertaken reform of economic and market practices and expansion of the sphere for private ownership of property in China. However, Chinese markets generally continue to experience inefficiency, volatility and pricing anomalies resulting from governmental influence, a lack of publicly available information and/or political and social instability. Internal social unrest or confrontations with other neighboring countries, including military conflicts in response to such events, may also disrupt economic development in China and result in a greater risk of currency fluctuations, currency convertibility, interest rate fluctuations and higher rates of inflation. Export growth continues to be a major driver of China&#8217;s rapid economic growth. Reduction in spending on Chinese products and services, institution of tariffs or other trade barriers, or a downturn in any of the economies of China&#8217;s key trading partners may have an adverse impact on the Chinese economy.<br/><br/><b>Risk of Investing in Emerging Markets</b><b>. </b>The Fund&#8217;s investments in emerging markets may be subject to a greater risk of loss than investments in more developed markets. Emerging markets may be more likely to experience inflation risk, political turmoil and rapid changes in economic conditions than more developed markets. Emerging markets often have less uniformity in accounting and reporting requirements, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities.<br/><br/><b>Risk of Investing in South Korea</b><b>. </b>The Fund&#8217;s investments in South Korean issuers may subject the Fund to legal, regulatory, political, currency, security, and economic risks that are specific to South Korea. In addition, economic and political developments of South Korean neighbors may have an adverse effect on the South Korean economy. As a result, such risks may adversely affect the value of the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br/><br/><b>Valuation Risk</b><b>. </b>The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Performance Information </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best<b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>2003-06-30worst2008-12-31The Fund's total return for the six months endedwww.iShares.com2012-06-30The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).best1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)2003-06-30<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b><b>Fees and Expenses </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Consumer Staples Sector Risk. </b>The consumer staples sector may be affected by marketing campaigns, changes in consumer demands, government regulations and changes in commodity prices.<br /><br /><b>Currency Risk. </b>Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br /><br /><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Financial Sector Risk. </b>Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br /><br /><b>Geographic Risk. </b>A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br /><br /><b>Health Care Sector Risk. </b>The health care sector may be affected by government regulations and government health care programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk. </b>Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>European Economic Risk</b>. <br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Risk of Investing in the United Kingdom. </b>The Fund&#8217;s investment in British issuers may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security, and economic risk specific to the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom has one of the largest economies in Europe, and the United States and other European countries are substantial trading partners of the United Kingdom. As a result, the British economy may be impacted by changes to the economic health of the United States and other European countries. The British economy, along with certain other European economies, experienced a significant economic slowdown during the recent financial crisis; certain British financial institutions were severely under-capitalized and required government intervention to survive.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund. <br /><br /><b>Security Risk. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Structural Risk. </b>The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br /><br /><b>Valuation Risk. </b>The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.<b>Performance Information</b>worstYou may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:2008-12-31The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 27.25% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -21.23% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 4% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30bestThe best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 24.99% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.88% in the 3rd quarter of 2002.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).2009-06-30<b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.worstiSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> S&amp;P 100 ETF<br/>Ticker: OEF&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca2008-12-31<b>Average Annual Total Returns</b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>2000-10-23As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.The Underlying Index is designed to measure the performance of 100 large-capitalization global companies. These companies are expected to be highly liquid and represent some of the largest multinational businesses in the world. The Underlying Index is a subset of the S&amp;P Global 1200<sup>TM </sup>and contains 100 common stocks, screened for sector representation, liquidity and size. The market capitalization of constituent companies is adjusted to reflect only those shares that are available to non-U.S. investors. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries: Australia, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. Components primarily include consumer staples, energy, financial and information technology companies, and may change over time.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.2000-05-22<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobalCleanEnergyETF column period compact * ~</div>www.iShares.comAfter-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.2007-11-13<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesSandP100ETF column period compact * ~</div>
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You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. <br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/> percentage of the value of your investments)</b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Global Clean Energy ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Global Clean Energy Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.best2009-06-30worst2008-12-31<b>Example. </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months endedThis Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:2012-06-30The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-3049154best2009-06-30269worst6042002-09-30<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 58% of the average value of its portfolio.2000-05-22<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b><b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesAsia50ETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
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Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Staples Sector Risk. </b>The consumer staples sector may be affected by marketing campaigns, changes in consumer demands, government regulations and changes in commodity prices.<br/><br/><b>Currency Risk.</b> Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br/><br/><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk.</b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Financial Sector Risk.</b> Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br/><br/><b>Geographic Risk.</b> A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Information Technology Sector Risk.</b> Information technology companies face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk.</b> Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>European Economic Risk </b>and <b>North American Economic Risk</b>.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Security Risk.</b> Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br/><br/><b>Structural Risk.</b> The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br/><br/><b>Valuation Risk.</b> The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesSAndP500ValueETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesInternationalDevelopedPropertyETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesInternationalDevelopedPropertyETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesSp100EtfBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobalConsumerDiscretionaryETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobalConsumerDiscretionaryETF column period compact * ~</div>2008-06-24<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobalConsumerStaplesETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobalConsumerStaplesETF column period compact * ~</div>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> GLOBAL CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY ETF <br/>Ticker: RXI&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> GLOBAL CLEAN ENERGY ETF<br/>Ticker: ICLN&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NASDAQThe iShares Global Consumer Discretionary ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Global 1200 Consumer Discretionary Sector Index<sup>TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The Underlying Index is designed to track the performance of approximately 30 of what is expected to be the most liquid and tradable securities of global companies involved in clean energy related businesses. The Underlying Index includes clean energy production companies and clean energy equipment and technology providers, and the Fund is concentrated in the clean energy industry. For these purposes, &#8220;clean energy&#8221; sources include biofuel and biomass, ethanol and fuel alcohol, geothermal energy, hydroelectricity, and solar and wind energy. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks and companies in the following countries or regions: Austria, Brazil, Chile, China, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Norway, Portugal, Spain and the United States. Components primarily include energy, industrials, technology and utilities companies, and may change over time. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> GLOBAL CONSUMER STAPLES ETF <br/>Ticker: KXI&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Global Consumer Staples ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Global 1200 Consumer Staples Sector Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 18.93% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -18.56% in the 3rd quarter of 2002.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses </b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a <br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b><b>Example. </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Clean Energy Risk</b><b>. </b>Clean energy companies may be highly dependent upon government subsidies, contracts with government entities, and the successful development of new and proprietary technologies. In addition, seasonal weather conditions, fluctuations in supply of and demand for clean energy products, and international political events may cause fluctuations in the performance of clean energy companies and the prices of their securities.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Currency Risk</b><b>. </b> Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br /><br /><b>Custody Risk</b><b>. </b> Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br /><br /><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Geographic Risk</b><b>. </b> A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk. </b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Industrials Sector Risk. </b>The industrials sector may be affected by changes in the supply and demand for products and services, product obsolescence, claims for environmental damage or product liability and general economic conditions, among other factors.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br /><br /><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>Asian Economic Risk</b>, <b>Central and South American Economic Risk </b>and <b>European Economic Risk</b>. <br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Privatization Risk</b><b>. </b>Some countries in which the Fund invests have begun a process of privatizing certain entities and industries. Privatized entities may lose money or be re-nationalized.<br /><br /><b>Reliance on Trading Partners Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund invests in countries whose economies are heavily dependent upon trading with key partners. Any reduction in this trading may have an adverse impact on the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Risk of Investing in Emerging Markets</b><b>. </b>The Fund&#8217;s investments in emerging markets may be subject to a greater risk of loss than investments in more developed markets. Emerging markets may be more likely to experience inflation risk, political turmoil and rapid changes in economic conditions than more developed markets. Emerging markets often have less uniformity in accounting and reporting requirements, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Security Risk</b><b>. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Small-Capitalization Companies Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund may invest in the securities of small-capitalization companies. Compared to mid- and large-capitalization companies, small-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br /><br /><b>Structural Risk</b><b>. </b>The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br /><br /><b>Technology Sector Risk</b><b>. </b>Technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. Technology companies typically face intense competition and potentially rapid product obsolescence. They are also heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br /><br /><b>Utilities Sector Risk. </b>The utilities sector is subject to significant government regulation and oversight. Companies in the utilities sector may be adversely affected due to increases in fuel and operating costs, rising costs of financing capital construction and the cost of complying with regulations, among other factors.<br /><br /><b>Valuation Risk</b><b>. </b>The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobalFinancialsETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobalFinancialsETF column period compact * ~</div>49154269604iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> GLOBAL FINANCIALS ETF<br/>Ticker: IXG&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective</b>The iShares Global Financials ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Global 1200 Financials Sector Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses</b><b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 4% of the average value of its portfolio.The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 31.72% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -42.16% in the 3rd quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30The Underlying Index measures the performance of companies that Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;) deems to be part of the consumer staples sector of the economy and that S&amp;P believes are important to global markets. It is a subset of the S&amp;P Global 1200<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM</sup>. Components primarily include consumer discretionary, consumer goods and consumer staples companies, and may change over time. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chil&#233;, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Example.</b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:49154269604<b>Portfolio Turnover.</b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 6% of the average value of its portfolio.best2009-06-30<b>Principal Investment Strategies</b>worst2011-09-30iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPED <br/>PROPERTY ETF<br/>Ticker: WPS&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Investment Objective </b>www.iShares.com1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.49<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobalHealthcareETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobalHealthcareETF column period compact * ~</div>154269iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> GLOBAL 100 ETF <br/>Ticker: IOO&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca604After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.The Fund's total return for the six months ended2012-06-30The Underlying Index measures the performance of companies that Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;) deems to be part of the financial sector of the economy and that S&amp;P believes are important to global markets. It is a subset of the S&amp;P Global 1200<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM</sup>. Components primarily include financial and insurance companies, and may change over time. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries or regions: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chil&#233;, China, Colombia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Portugal, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the United States.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).best<b>Summary of Principal Risks</b>2009-06-30worstFund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. </b>The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Goods Sector Risk. </b>The consumer goods sector may be affected by changes in social trends and consumer demands. Many consumer goods are sold internationally and companies that sell such products may be affected by market conditions in other countries and regions.<br/><br/><b>Consumer Staples Sector Risk. </b>The consumer staples sector may be affected by marketing campaigns, changes in consumer demands, government regulations and changes in commodity prices.<br/><br/><b>Currency Risk</b><b>. </b>Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br/><br/><b>Custody Risk</b><b>. </b>Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Geographic Risk</b><b>. </b>A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk</b><b>. </b>Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>European Economic Risk </b>and <b>North American Economic Risk</b>.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Security Risk</b><b>. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br/><br/><b>Structural Risk</b><b>. </b>The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br/><br/><b>Valuation Risk</b><b>. </b>The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.2002-09-30<b>Performance Information </b><b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/> percentage of the value of your investments)</b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesGlobalCleanEnergyETF column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Investment Objective </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesGlobalCleanEnergyETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
The iShares Global Healthcare ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Global 1200 Healthcare Sector Index<sup>TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Example. </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobalCleanEnergyETF column period compact * ~</div>
2000-12-05This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> GLOBAL ENERGY ETF<br/>Ticker: IXC&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b><b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 9% of the average value of its portfolio.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b><b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Global Energy ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Global 1200 Energy Sector Index<sup>TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).The iShares International Developed Property ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Developed ex US Property Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM </sup>(the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b><b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Fees and Expenses </b>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses <br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a <br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. <br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesGlobal100ETF column period compact * ~</div>
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 8% of the average value of its portfolio.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesGlobal100ETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The Underlying Index measures the performance of companies that Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;) deems to be part of the consumer discretionary sector of the economy and that S&amp;P believes are important to global markets. It is a subset of the S&amp;P Global 1200<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM</sup>. Components primarily include automotive, consumer discretionary, media and retail companies, and may change over time. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries or regions: Australia, Canada, Chil&#233;, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index is a free float-adjusted, market capitalization weighted index that defines and measures the investable universe of publicly-traded real estate companies domiciled in developed countries outside of the United States. Components primarily include global real estate and real estate companies, and may change over time. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries or regions: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index had a total market capitalization of approximately $487.7 billion. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses</b><br/><b>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Currency Risk. </b>Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Geographic Risk. </b>A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br /><br /><b>Global Real Estate Risk. </b>Since the Fund concentrates its assets in the global real estate industry, the Fund will be impacted by the performance of the global real estate markets.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk. </b>Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>Asian Economic Risk </b>and <b>European Economic Risk</b>. <br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Real Estate Investment Risk. </b>The Fund invests in companies that invest in real estate, such as real estate investment trusts (&#8220;REITs&#8221;) or real estate holding companies, which exposes investors in the Fund to the risks of owning real estate directly, as well as to risks that relate specifically to the way in which real estate companies are organized and operated.<br /><br /><b>Risk of Investing in Japan. </b>The Japanese economy may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability, which could have a negative impact on Japanese securities.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Security Risk. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br /><br /><b>Valuation Risk. </b>The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Example. </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:best2009-06-3049The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended1542012-06-30worst2008-12-31269best2009-06-30604worst2008-12-31The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 38.48% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -24.91% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Example. </b><b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b><b>Portfolio Turnover. </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobalIndustrialsETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobalIndustrialsETF column period compact * ~</div>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 3% of the average value of its portfolio.This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b><b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>2007-07-30As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /> <b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /> <b>Automotive Sector Risk. </b>The automotive sector can be highly cyclical, and companies in the sector may suffer periodic operating losses. Companies in the automotive sector face intense competition, both domestically and internationally. The sector can be significantly affected by labor relations, fluctuating component prices, product recalls, domestic and international economies, and consumer demands.<br /><br /> <b>Concentration Risk. </b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /> <b>Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. </b> The consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, exchange and interest rates, competition, consumers&#8217; disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing campaigns.<br /><br /> <b>Currency Risk</b><b>. </b> Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br /><br /> <b>Custody Risk</b><b>. </b> Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br /><br /> <b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /> <b>Geographic Risk</b><b>. </b> A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br /><br /> <b>Index-Related Risk. </b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /> <b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /> <b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /> <b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /> <b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /> <b>Media Sector Risk</b><b>. </b> Companies in the media sector may be affected by industry competition, substantial capital requirements, state and federal government regulations and obsolescence of media products and services due to competition and changing consumer tastes and interests.<br /><br /> <b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk</b><b>. </b> Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>European Economic Risk </b> and <b>North American Economic Risk</b>.<br /><br /> <b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Retail Sector Risk. </b>The retail sector may be affected by changes in domestic and international economies, consumer confidence, disposable household income and spending, and consumer tastes and preferences. Companies in the retail sector face intense competition.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Security Risk</b><b>. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Structural Risk</b><b>. </b>The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br /><br /><b>Valuation Risk</b><b>. </b>The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.<b>Investment Objective </b>49154<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).269604As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Currency Risk. </b>Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br /><br /><b>Custody Risk. </b>Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Financial Sector Risk. </b>Performance of companies in the financial sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. This sector has experienced significant losses in the recent past, and the impact of more stringent capital requirements and of recent or future regulation on any individual financial company or on the sector as a whole cannot be predicted.<br /><br /><b>Geographic Risk. </b>A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Insurance Industry Risk. </b>The insurance industry may be significantly affected by changes in interest rates, catastrophic events, price and marketing competition, the imposition of premium rate caps, or other changes in government regulation or tax law, among other factors.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk. </b>Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>European Economic Risk </b>and <b>North American Economic Risk</b>.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Risk of Investing in Emerging Markets. </b>The Fund&#8217;s investments in emerging markets may be subject to a greater risk of loss than investments in more developed markets. Emerging markets may be more likely to experience inflation risk, political turmoil and rapid changes in economic conditions than more developed markets. Emerging markets often have less uniformity in accounting and reporting requirements, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Security Risk. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Structural Risk. </b>The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br /><br /><b>Valuation Risk. </b>The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.<b>Performance Information</b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>The iShares Global Industrials ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Global 1200 Industrials Sector Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).The Underlying Index measures the performance of companies that Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;) deems to be part of the energy sector of the economy and that S&amp;P believes are important to global markets. It is a subset of the S&amp;P Global 1200<sup>TM</sup>. Components primarily include energy and oil and gas companies, and may change over time. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries: Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, France, Italy, Japan, Norway, Portugal, South Korea, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. <br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br/><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Fees and Expenses </b><b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 6% of the average value of its portfolio.The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 21.59% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.47% in the 4th quarter of 2008. <br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Principal Investment Strategies </b><b>Average Annual Total Returns <br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesInternationalDevelopedPropertyETF column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesInternationalDevelopedPropertyETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 40.33% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -35.20% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).49154<b>Average Annual Total Returns</b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>269604As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>.</b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Commodity Risk. </b> The Fund&#8217;s investments in certain companies, especially resource extraction and production companies, are sensitive to fluctuations in certain commodity markets, and changes in those markets may cause the Fund&#8217;s portfolio to lose value.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Currency Risk</b><b>.</b> Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br /><br /><b>Custody Risk</b><b>.</b> Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br /><br /><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b> The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>.</b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Geographic Risk</b><b>.</b> A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>.</b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk</b><b>.</b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br /><br /><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk</b><b>.</b> Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>European Economic Risk </b> and <b>North American Economic Risk</b>. <br /><br /><b>Oil and Gas Sector Risk. </b> Companies in the oil and gas sector are affected by worldwide energy prices and exploration and production costs. Companies in the oil and gas sector may have significant operations in areas at risk for natural disasters, social unrest and environmental damage. These companies may also be at risk for increased government regulation and intervention, litigation, and negative publicity and perception.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Security Risk</b><b>.</b> Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Structural Risk</b><b>.</b> The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>.</b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br /><br /><b>Valuation Risk</b><b>.</b> The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesEmergingMarketsInfrastructureETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesEmergingMarketsInfrastructureETF column period compact * ~</div><b>Performance Information </b><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.2001-11-12The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-06-30<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.worstAfter-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.2008-12-31Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.www.iShares.com1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best<b>Non-Diversification Risk</b><b>. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.2009-06-30The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.worst2008-12-312006-09-121-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesGlobalFinancialsETF column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesGlobalFinancialsETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses<br/> (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a<br/> percentage of the value of your investments)</b>2006-09-12After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.<b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:49154269604<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesGlobalConsumerStaplesETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
iSHARES<sup>&#174;</sup> GLOBAL HEALTHCARE ETF<br/>Ticker: IXJ&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesGlobalConsumerDiscretionaryETF column period compact * ~</div>
<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 6% of the average value of its portfolio.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesGlobalConsumerDiscretionaryETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesGlobalConsumerStaplesETF column period compact * ~</div>
The Underlying Index measures the performance of companies that Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;) deems to be a part of the healthcare sector of the economy and that S&amp;P believes are important to global markets. It is a subset of the S&amp;P Global 1200<sup>TM</sup>. Components primarily include biotechnology, healthcare, medical equipment and pharmaceuticals companies, and may change over time. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.<br/><br/>BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.<br/><br/>Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.<br/><br/>BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.<br/><br/>The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received).<br/><br/>The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br/><br/><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Summary of Principal Risks </b><b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index measures the performance of companies that Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;) deems to be part of the industrials sector of the economy and that S&amp;P believes are important to global markets. It is a subset of the S&amp;P Global 1200<sup>TM</sup>. Components primarily include capital goods, commercial and professional services, industrials and transportation companies, and may change over time. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries or regions: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chil&#233;, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is S&amp;P.<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br/><br/><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Biotechnology Sector Risk.</b> Biotechnology companies face intense competition and the potential for rapid product obsolescence. Biotechnology companies may be adversely affected by the loss or impairment of intellectual property rights or changes in government regulations.<br/><br/><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br/><br/><b>Currency Risk. </b>Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br/><br/><b>Custody Risk. </b>Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br/><br/><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br/><br/><b>Geographic Risk. </b>A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br/><br/><b>Healthcare Sector Risk. </b>The healthcare sector may be affected by government regulations and government healthcare programs, increases or decreases in the cost of medical products and services and product liability claims, among other factors. Many healthcare companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of a patent may adversely affect their profitability. Healthcare companies are subject to competitive forces that may result in price discounting, and may be thinly capitalized and susceptible to product obsolescence.<br/><br/><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br/><br/><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br/><br/><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br/><br/><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br/><br/><b>Market Trading Risk. </b>The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br/><br/><b>Medical Equipment Industry Risk.</b> Many companies in the medical equipment industry are affected by the expiration of patents, litigation based on product liability, industry competition, product obsolescence and regulatory approvals, among other factors.<br/><br/><b>Non-Diversification Risk. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br/><br/><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk. </b>Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>European Economic Risk </b>and <b>North American Economic Risk</b>.<br/><br/><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br/><br/><b>Pharmaceuticals Industry Risk.</b> Companies in the pharmaceuticals industry may be affected by industry competition, dependencies on a limited number of products, obsolescence of products, government approvals and regulations, loss or impairment of intellectual property rights and litigation regarding product liability.<br/><br/><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br/><br/><b>Security Risk. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br/><br/><b>Structural Risk. </b>The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br/><br/><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br/><br/><b>Valuation Risk. </b>The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 14.38% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -13.20% in the 4th quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Non-Diversification Risk. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> EMERGING MARKETS INFRASTRUCTURE ETF<br/>Ticker: EMIF&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NASDAQ<b>Investment Objective </b>The iShares Emerging Markets Infrastructure ETF (the &#8220;Fund&#8221;) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the S&amp;P Emerging Markets Infrastructure Index<sup style="POSITION: relative; BOTTOM: 0.8ex; VERTICAL-ALIGN: baseline">TM</sup> (the &#8220;Underlying Index&#8221;).<b>Fees and Expenses </b>The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust (the &#8220;Trust&#8221;) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (&#8220;BFA&#8221;) (the &#8220;Investment Advisory Agreement&#8221;) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. &#8220;Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses&#8221; reflect the Fund&#8217;s pro rata share of the fees and expenses incurred by investing in other investment companies. The impact of Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses is included in the total returns of the Fund. Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not used to calculate the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;) and are not included in the calculation of the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;). BFA, the investment adviser to the Fund, has contractually agreed to waive its management fees in an amount equal to the Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses attributable to the Fund&#8217;s investments in other iShares funds through June 30, 2014. The contractual waiver may be terminated prior to June 30, 2014 only upon written agreement of the Trust and BFA. During the most recently completed fiscal year, the amount of such expenses incurred and fees waived rounded to 0.03%.<br/><br/>You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s net asset value per share (&#8220;NAV&#8221;), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk</b><b>. </b> Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Capital Goods Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> The capital goods sector may be affected by fluctuations in the business cycle. Many capital goods are sold internationally and companies in this sector are subject to market conditions in other countries and regions.<br /><br /><b>Commercial and Professional Services Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> The commercial and professional services sector may be affected by corporate demand, changes in domestic and international economies, exchange rates, interest rates, competition and fluctuations in the business cycle.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b> To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Currency Risk</b><b>. </b> Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br /><br /><b>Custody Risk</b><b>. </b> Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk</b><b>. </b> Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Geographic Risk</b><b>. </b> A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk.</b> There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Industrials Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> The industrials sector may be affected by changes in the supply and demand for products and services, product obsolescence, claims for environmental damage or product liability and general economic conditions, among other factors.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk</b><b>. </b> Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk</b><b>. </b> As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk</b><b>. </b> Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>European Economic Risk and North American Economic Risk</b>. <br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk</b><b>. </b> The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk</b><b>.</b> The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Security Risk</b><b>. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Structural Risk</b><b>. </b> The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk</b><b>. </b> Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not.<br /><br /><b>Transportation Sector Risk</b><b>.</b> The transportation sector may be adversely affected by economic changes, fuel prices, labor relations, insurance costs and government regulations.<br /><br /><b>Valuation Risk</b><b>. </b> The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:June 30, 2014<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses <br/>(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a <br/>percentage of the value of your investments)</b><b>Example. </b>This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund&#8217;s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:<b>Portfolio Turnover. </b>The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or &#8220;turns over&#8221; its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund&#8217;s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund&#8217;s portfolio turnover rate was 14% of the average value of its portfolio.The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 12.40% in the 3rd quarter of 2009; the worst was -12.50% in the 2nd quarter of 2002.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.The Fund's total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2009-09-30worst<b>Performance Information </b>2002-06-30The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Fund&#8217;s prospectus (the &#8220;Prospectus&#8221;).<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b><b>Principal Investment Strategies </b>The Underlying Index is designed to track performance of 30 of the largest publicly listed companies in the infrastructure industry in emerging markets. The Underlying Index includes three distinct infrastructure sub-sectors: energy, transportation and utilities. As of March 31, 2012, the Underlying Index was comprised of stocks of companies in the following countries: Brazil, Chil&#233;, China, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Russia, Turkey and South Korea. As of March 31, 2012, each of the Underlying Index&#8217;s constituents had a minimum market capitalization of $272.8 million. Components primarily include energy, industrials, infrastructure, oil and gas transportation and utilities companies, and may change over time. <br /><br />BFA uses a &#8220;passive&#8221; or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund&#8217;s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to &#8220;beat&#8221; the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. <br /><br />Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. <br /><br />BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. &#8220;Representative sampling&#8221; is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. <br /><br />The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. BFA will waive management fees in an amount equal to the management fees paid by the Fund indirectly as a result of its investment in other iShares funds. <br /><br />The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund&#8217;s total assets (including the value of the collateral received). <br /><br />The Underlying Index is sponsored by an organization (the &#8220;Index Provider&#8221;) that is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. The Fund&#8217;s Index Provider is Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (&#8220;S&amp;P&#8221;).<br /><br /><b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry. Because all of the securities included in the Underlying Index are issued by utility, energy and transportation infrastructure companies, the Fund will be concentrated in the infrastructure industry.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.com<b>Industry Concentration Policy. </b>The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry. Because all of the securities included in the Underlying Index are issued by utility, energy and transportation infrastructure companies, the Fund will be concentrated in the infrastructure industry.<b>Average Annual Total Returns<br/>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b><b>Summary of Principal Risks </b>As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund&#8217;s NAV, trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective.<br /><br /><b>Asset Class Risk. </b>Securities in the Underlying Index or in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Concentration Risk. </b>To the extent that the Fund&#8217;s investments are concentrated in a particular region, country, market, industry or asset class, the Fund may be susceptible to loss due to adverse occurrences affecting that region, country, market, industry or asset class.<br /><br /><b>Currency Risk</b>. Because the Fund&#8217;s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund&#8217;s NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar.<br /><br /><b>Custody Risk. </b>Less developed markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settling of trades and the holding of securities by local banks, agents and depositories.<br /><br /><b>Energy Sector Risk. </b>The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, without limitation, changes in energy prices, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities.<br /><br /><b>Equity Securities Risk. </b>Equity securities are subject to changes in value and their values may be more volatile than other asset classes.<br /><br /><b>Geographic Risk. </b>A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests.<br /><br /><b>Index-Related Risk. </b>There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund&#8217;s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected for a period of time, and may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its Shareholders.<br /><br /><b>Industrials Sector Risk. </b>The industrials sector may be affected by changes in the supply and demand for products and services, product obsolescence, claims for environmental damage or product liability and general economic conditions, among other factors.<br /><br /><b>Infrastructure Sector Risk. </b>Companies in the infrastructure sector may be subject to a variety of factors that could adversely affect their business or operations, including high interest costs in connection with capital construction programs, high degrees of leverage, costs associated with governmental, environmental and other regulations, the level of government spending on infrastructure projects, and other factors. The stock prices of transportation companies may be affected by supply and demand for their specific product, government regulation, world events and economic conditions. The profitability of energy companies is related to worldwide energy prices, exploration, and production spending. Utilities companies face intense competition, which may have an adverse effect on their profit margins, and the rates charged by regulated utility companies are subject to review and limitation by governmental regulatory commissions.<br /><br /><b>Issuer Risk. </b>Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes to the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline.<br /><br /><b>Management Risk. </b>As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA&#8217;s investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.<br /><br /><b>Market Risk. </b>The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns.<br /><br /><b>Market Trading Risk. </b> The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND&#8217;S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.<br /><br /><b>Mid-Capitalization Companies Risk. </b>The Fund may invest in the securities of mid-capitalization companies. Compared to large-capitalization companies, mid-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br /><br /><b>Non-Diversification Risk. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<br /><br /><b>Non-U.S. Securities Risk. </b> Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting a non-U.S. issuer or market. The Fund is specifically exposed to<b> Asian Economic Risk </b>and <b>Central and South American Economic Risk</b>. <br/><br/><b>Oil and Gas Sector Risk. </b>Companies in the oil and gas sector are affected by worldwide energy prices and exploration and production costs. Companies in the oil and gas sector may have significant operations in areas at risk for natural disasters, social unrest and environmental damage. These companies may also be at risk for increased government regulation and intervention, litigation, and negative publicity and perception.<br /><br /><b>Passive Investment Risk. </b>The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets.<br /><br /><b>Privatization Risk. </b>Some countries in which the Fund invests have begun a process of privatizing certain entities and industries. Privatized entities may lose money or be re-nationalized.<br /><br /><b>Reliance on Trading Partners Risk. </b>The Fund invests in countries whose economies are heavily dependent upon trading with key partners. Any reduction in this trading may have an adverse impact on the Fund&#8217;s investments. The Fund is specifically exposed to <b>U.S. Economic Risk</b>. <br/><br/><b>Risk of Investing in Brazil. </b>Investment in Brazilian issuers involves risks that are specific to Brazil, including legal, regulatory, political and economic risks. As a result, such risks may adversely affect the value of the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Risk of Investing in China. </b> The Fund&#8217;s investment exposure to China subjects the Fund to risks specific to China. China may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability. China is a developing market and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Over the past 25 years, the Chinese government has undertaken reform of economic and market practices and expansion of the sphere for private ownership of property in China. However, Chinese markets generally continue to experience inefficiency, volatility and pricing anomalies resulting from governmental influence, a lack of publicly available information and/or political and social instability. Internal social unrest or confrontations with other neighboring countries, including military conflicts in response to such events, may also disrupt economic development in China and result in a greater risk of currency fluctuations, currency convertibility, interest rate fluctuations and higher rates of inflation. Export growth continues to be a major driver of China&#8217;s rapid economic growth. Reduction in spending on Chinese products and services, institution of tariffs or other trade barriers, or a downturn in any of the economies of China&#8217;s key trading partners may have an adverse impact on the Chinese economy.<br /><br /><b>Risk of Investing in Emerging Markets. </b>The Fund&#8217;s investments in emerging markets may be subject to a greater risk of loss than investments in more developed markets. Emerging markets may be more likely to experience inflation risk, political turmoil and rapid changes in economic conditions than more developed markets. Emerging markets often have less uniformity in accounting and reporting requirements, unreliable securities valuation and greater risk associated with custody of securities.<br /><br /><b>Securities Lending Risk. </b>The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the Fund&#8217;s loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of the collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund.<br /><br /><b>Security Risk. </b>Some countries and regions in which the Fund invests have experienced security concerns. Incidents involving a country&#8217;s or region&#8217;s security may cause uncertainty in these markets and may adversely affect their economies and the Fund&#8217;s investments.<br /><br /><b>Small-Capitalization Companies Risk. </b>The Fund may invest in the securities of small-capitalization companies. Compared to mid- and large-capitalization companies, small-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid.<br /><br /><b>Structural Risk. </b>The countries in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability.<br /><br /><b>Tracking Error Risk. </b>Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund&#8217;s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund&#8217;s holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Underlying Index, pricing differences, the Fund&#8217;s holding of cash, differences on timing of the accrual of dividends, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not. DUE TO THE RELATIVE ILLIQUIDITY OF CERTAIN MARKETS IN WHICH THE FUND INVESTS, AND THE POSSIBILITY OF TRANSACTION COSTS INCURRED AS A RESULT OF THE NEED TO COMPLY WITH LEGAL RESTRICTIONS, BFA EXPECTS THAT THE FUND MAY EXPERIENCE HIGHER TRACKING ERROR THAN IS TYPICAL FOR OTHER EQUITY INDEX EXCHANGE-TRADED FUNDS.<br /><br /><b>Transportation Sector Risk. </b>The transportation sector may be adversely affected by economic changes, fuel prices, labor relations, insurance costs and government regulations.<br /><br /><b>Utilities Sector Risk. </b>The utilities sector is subject to significant government regulation and oversight. Companies in the utilities sector may be adversely affected due to increases in fuel and operating costs, rising costs of financing capital construction and the cost of complying with regulations, among other factors.<br /><br /><b>Valuation Risk. </b> The sales price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund&#8217;s valuation of the security and may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities in the Fund&#8217;s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund&#8217;s shares.As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund&#8217;s performance could trail that of other investments.<b>Non-Diversification Risk. </b>The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund&#8217;s performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.<b>Performance Information </b>The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund&#8217;s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Prospectus.The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)www.iShares.comPast performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.<b>Year-by-Year Returns (Years Ended December 31) </b>The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months ended2012-06-30best2010-09-30The Fund&#8217;s total return for the six months endedworst2012-06-30best2011-09-302009-06-30worstAfter-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.2011-09-30Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.2001-11-13The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 22.86% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -22.14% in the 3rd quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesGlobalHealthcareETF column period compact * ~</div>
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The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 13.41% in the 3rd quarter of 2010; the worst was -24.76% in the 3rd quarter of 2011.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended December 31, 2011)</b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.2009-06-16The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 18.59% in the 2nd quarter of 2008; the worst was -27.21% in the 3rd quarter of 2008.<br/><br/>Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).<b>Average Annual Total Returns </b><br/><b>(for the periods ended December 31, 2011) </b>After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor&#8217;s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (&#8220;IRAs&#8221;).Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.www.iShares.com1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualFundOperatingExpensesTransposediSharesEmergingMarketsInfrastructureETF column period compact * ~</div>
iSHARES<sup>&#174</sup> GLOBAL INDUSTRIALS ETF<br/>Ticker: EXI&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesGlobalIndustrialsETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAnnualTotalReturnsiSharesEmergingMarketsInfrastructureETFBarChart column period compact * ~</div>
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2006-09-12You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the example that follows:<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobalMaterialsETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobalMaterialsETF column period compact * ~</div><b>Industry Concentration Policy.</b> The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries, which may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies, to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.<div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleExpenseExampleTransposediSharesGlobalInfrastructureETF column period compact * ~</div><div style="display:none">~ http://www.iShares.com/role/ScheduleAverageAnnualTotalReturnsTransposediSharesGlobalInfrastructureETF column period compact * ~</div>As with any investment, you could